Virginia Tech announced this afternoon that head men’s basketball coach Seth
Greenberg has agreed to new terms for the remaining four years of his existing
contract, and has also received a two-year extension, giving him a six-year
contract. Terms of the deal are being withheld while it is finalized, and are
expected to be released in the next week to ten days.
“I am excited to be afforded the opportunity to continue to build the
basketball program at Virginia Tech,” Greenberg said in a hokiesports.com
press release. “What makes Virginia Tech so special is the people and
their passion for the University. My family has embraced all that the University
stands for and I feel this is where I belong.”
In addition to the two-year extension, Greenberg is expected to receive a
raise in the neighborhood of a quarter million dollars or more, which would push
his total compensation from its current level of $950,000 per year to well over
a million dollars a year. His contract will also include performance incentives
that could increase his pay even more.
Greenberg’s current contract stipulates that it would be evaluated and
possibly renegotiated at the end of this season, and Virginia Tech athletic
director Jim Weaver wasted little time in getting down to business once Tech’s
season ended Wednesday night against Rhode Island in the NIT. Weaver spoke with
Greenberg and Greenberg’s attorney Thursday night and hammered out the basics of
the new deal.
Greenberg’s name had been mentioned in connection with the open St. John’s
job, and Greenberg was rumored to be the top choice to coach the Red Storm. As
Tech advanced in the NIT, St. John’s offered the job to Florida’s Billy Donovan,
who turned it down, and got into deep discussions with Georgia Tech coach Paul
Hewitt, who came very close to leaving Atlanta but decided to stay with the
Yellow Jackets.
Greenberg has a record of 132-94 at Virginia Tech, good for a winning
percentage of .584, but in the last four seasons, his Hokies have gone 87-50
(.635). The 87 wins in the last four seasons tie the school mark for wins in a
four-year period, held by Tech’s 1982-83 through 1985-86 squads, who went 87-42
(.674) under Charlie Moir.
Greenberg has led the Hokies to the postseason five out of six years (one
NCAA bid and four NIT bids), including the last four seasons. The school record
for consecutive postseason bids is five, set under Moir from 1982-1986 (two NCAA
bids, three NIT bids).
Greenberg’s 132 career wins at Tech are second only to Moir (213-119). At a
pace of 20 wins per year, Greenberg will catch Moir in about four seasons.
With this extension to Greenberg’s contract, Virginia Tech will have
continuity and should be successful for the foreseeable future in the two major
revenue sports of football and men’s basketball. Those two programs drive the
bulk of athletics department revenue and will enable Virginia Tech to continue
to build its Olympic sports programs, which have improved since entering the ACC
in 2004.
“I am pleased that Coach Greenberg will continue his mission at Virginia
Tech and will lead the Hokies for the next six seasons,” Tech Athletic
Director Jim Weaver said. “He has done an outstanding job in creating a
program and environment that has the Hokies competitive year in and year out in
the ACC. Under Coach Greenberg’s tutelage, the Hokies have the fourth-best
regular season record in the ACC, and he has created one of the best programs in
the country.”
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